Shards of Glass
by bluesterrance
Summary: The team investigates after a lab tech is attacked. General, no pairings. Contains some graphic content. Chapter 14 is now up! Last chapter. sniff Reviews are love.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Rebekah Mayers is the only character I own. The rest of the characters do not belong to me, they belong to those who created CSI:Miami. I've never posted anything on FF before, so I am a wee bit nervous about it. Please let me know what you think. :-) There are no pairings in this fic, and it will be very similar to the format of a CSI:Miami episode.

**Shards Of Glass**

**Chapter 1**

Six months.

Six months wasn't a long time when it came to working in the Miami Dade Crime Lab.

Rebekah Mayers knew this every single day. As a Level 1 lab technician working with biologicals, she found there were procedures and processes to learn for almost every case she was involved in. She worked closely with the other techs to make sure she never missed anything, and when she did, she wanted to know how not to miss it in the future.

A slimly-built young woman with dark eyes and hair, Rebekah was soft-spoken, polite, and rarely took the elevator.

"Why take the elevator when I have two legs to use the stairs?" It was a quirk that most of her co-workers enjoyed teasing her about.

"Yeah, well I'm not lugging this heavy box of evidence up a few flights of stairs." Eric Delko called out, just before the elevator doors closed.

Rebekah grinned and pushed open the door to the stairwell. She arrived at her floor at about the same time Delko did, and she flashed another grin in his direction as she walked down the hallway.

Delko rolled his eyes before heading inside the trace evidence lab.

"Ms. Mayers." Horatio Caine silently walked into the DNA lab. "I have some samples from the Perkins case that I need you to run ASAP, please."

"Sure, no problem, Lieutenant." She replied, quickly donning her white lab coat and giving a quick smile to Maxine Valera, who was all ready hard at work.

"Thank you." Horatio replied as he walked out.

There were large boxed containing evidence envelopes waiting to be processed sitting inside a locked cabinet. Each box of evidence was alphabetized by case name and had to be signed out any time someone worked on a piece of evidence. Organization and documentation was critical in the crime lab so that everyone knew where evidence was and who was working on it at any given time.

Rebekah was used to walking in the door and having to start working samples right away. She found there was almost no downtime during her shifts, as there was always another case she could be helping with. It made her 9 hour days fly by.

She made it a priority to process the swabs that Horatio had requested. Taking her time, Rebekah worked meticulously to make sure the results would not be tainted in any way. Processing DNA from collection swabs was something she had learned early on, so she happily went about her work without needing to be supervised. She paged Horatio as soon as she had the results.

"What have you got for me?" He asked.

"The DNA sample taken from Sam Perkins matches the semen found on the victim." Rebekah handed Horatio the printout results so he could take a look at them.

He studied the page for a few moments and then handed it back to her. "Good work, Ms. Mayers, thank you."

Rebekah flashed him a smile, "You're welcome."

"Any more surprises from the boyfriend?" Horatio asked. He always seemed to know tidbits of information about his employees, even though he didn't participate in office gossip or rumor mills.

Bryan Drake, Rebekah's boyfriend, had a periodic habit of blindfolding her once she got into her car. He often presented her with a random gift or took her out to dinner after her shift. Blindfolding her added to the element of surprise, and she always knew it was him as soon as the soft fabric covered her eyes.

"Not for awhile." She replied, "We're kind of going through a bad patch right now."

"I'm sorry to hear that." Horatio said, his tone genuine as always.

Rebekah shrugged her shoulders, forcing a smile of appreciation. "I should head home." She said after a few moments of silence.

"Be careful on those stairs and I'll see you tomorrow, ma'am." Horatio said as he turned to leave the lab.

She chuckled softly as she began to gather her things to leave. The week before, Horatio had been in the stairwell when Rebekah had missed a step in her haste to get downstairs. She wound up sliding down the last four steps on her behind. Luckily she had worn pants that day, otherwise she would have been much more embarrassed about mowing over her boss.

Rebekah grabbed her purse from her locker and then took the stairs down to her car in the parking garage. Unlocking the driver's side door, she climbed inside the vehicle and got situated behind the steering wheel. A black blindfold was placed over her eyes when she leaned her head back against the headrest.

A warm smile crossed her face, "Hi Sweetie."

There was no answer.

"Bryan?" She asked.

Still no answer.

"Hello?" She asked, a bit more tentatively.

Rebekah didn't become alarmed until two hands roughly grabbed her, dragging her between the front seats of her SUV and into the back.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N:** This chapter is rated R for violence and sexual assault. Feedback is love. :-)

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter 2**

She winced with pain.

There was a series of clatters and thumps as her purse, along with all its contents, followed her to the back seat.

Her body hardly had time to process anything before more pain was inflicted. The left side of her head slammed into the armrest on the car door. Rebekah felt dizzy and saw occasional flashes of light dancing around at the back of her eyes. She was grateful the blindfold was keeping her in darkness. There was nothing about this that she wanted to see.

"NO! Get off me!" She screeched.

The absence of any communication in return frightened her to the core. She began to thrash around on the back seat of the SUV, screaming, trying to release herself from the monster that was holding her down. A gloved hand clamped down over her mouth. She attempted to move her head around, but the pain and dizziness from the earlier blow made it difficult. Instead she tried to bite the hand that was stifling her screams. The gloved hand jerked away from her mouth just long enough to deliver a sharp slap to her face. She tasted blood inside her mouth as the glove clamped back down.

She felt pressure across her abdomen as her shirt was ripped open. Her legs were pinned down by the weight of a body on top of her, but that didn't stop her from trying to flail them around.

_No, no, no. Please don't do this to me. Please don't kill me._

She silently begged the monster to stop. Her throat was dry from screaming and her muscles ached from the exertion of trying to free herself. The hand was removed abruptly from her mouth and she gasped for breath. She yelped as the monster struck her face again. The weight pinning her legs down shifted as she was roughly moved, her shoulders now pressing uncomfortably against the arm rest.

The grip on her body loosened and Rebekah used the time to thrash around the back seat some more. She reached behind her, feeling for the door release, but her arm was forced back down to the floor boards. She found her voice again, screaming as loudly as she could. Two quick blows to her head, and she saw flashes of light behind her eyes again.

Gloved hands moved down to grope at her pants, trying to gain access. Rebekah felt sick to her stomach. Her left hand down on the floor boards brushed against something cold and metallic. She reached for it, as her belt was being unbuckled. Her hand closed around her small, double action .38 revolver.

Something she kept in her purse in case of emergencies.

She had never been more acutely aware of her surroundings. She was blind, but her other senses were heightened under the duress. The only sounds she could hear were her own screams and heavy breathing. Rebekah summoned her waning strength to kick her legs. The monster on top of her was still struggling with her belt and pants.

She grasped the gun tightly. Her left hand was not her dominant side; the revolver felt awkward and heavy. With as much force as she could muster, Rebekah lifted her arm up from the floor boards. There was a grunt of pain from the monster as she managed a glancing blow. She wrapped her index finger around the trigger.

The monster abandoned her pants, grabbing on to her left arm.

"Get off me!" She screamed again, her voice sounding scratchy.

She struggled with both of her arms, pointing the gun blindly, and then firmly pulling the trigger. There was a loud explosion of sound as the weapon discharged followed almost instantly by shattering glass. Rebekah had no idea if the bullet had hit her intended target, but it didn't seem to matter. Abruptly, all efforts to remove her clothes stopped. Her legs were suddenly free. She scrambled away. A door to her SUV opened. She heard shards of glass hitting the ground. Running footsteps, that quickly grew distant.

The monster was gone.

She held her breath and stayed still, listening intently for the slightest noise. Hearing nothing after what felt like an eternity, she yanked off the blindfold. Her head was pounding mercilessly and she felt intense pain and exhaustion throughout her entire being. Tears began to fall and her entire body shuddered with violent sobs.


	3. Chapter 3

**Shards of Glass **

Chapter 3

It was 7:30AM when Calleigh Duquesne parked her car in the MDPD garage. Paper coffee cup in hand, she headed toward the building when something caught her eye. There were pieces of glass on the ground, glinting in the fluorescent lights. As she shifted her gaze up, Calleigh noticed a broken rear passenger window on a silver SUV. She frowned, taking a few steps closer to the vehicle. There didn't seem to be any other damage aside from the shattered window. Sighing, Calleigh turned and walked into the crime lab.

She stowed her purse inside her locker and then went straight to the DNA lab. "Valera, have you seen Rebekah this morning?"

Valera shook her head, "Sorry, Calleigh. I don't think she's in yet. Is there something I can help you with?"

"Oh, no. Thank you." Calleigh gave Valera a smile. "It's not anything work-related. That is rather odd though, because her car is in the parking lot."

"Maybe she's getting some coffee." Valera shrugged.

"Maybe. Thanks." Calleigh walked out of the lab and caught sight of Ryan Wolfe talking to Delko in the hallway. "Hey, have either of you seen Rebekah Mayers today?"

"No, sorry." Wolfe replied.

"Me either." Delko added.

"Okay, thanks anyway." Calleigh sighed, and walked to the break room. She glanced around at the people inside, re-filling their coffee and grabbing a quick breakfast. There were no signs of Rebekah.

After checking in the ladies room, Calleigh flipped open her cell phone and dialed Rebekah's number. It went straight to voicemail. Calleigh hung up and called Horatio instead.

He picked up on the second ring. "Horatio." His voice rumbled into her ear.

"You haven't seen Rebekah Mayers, have you?" She asked.

"I haven't. Is there something wrong, Calleigh?" He knew her well enough to tell by the tone of her voice that she was concerned about something.

"I'm not sure…." She replied. She saw Horatio round the corner of the hallway and snapped her cell phone shut. She waited for him to meet up with her before speaking again. "One of the windows on her SUV was smashed and I wanted to let her know about it, but I haven't been able to find her anywhere. I tried calling her cell, but it goes to voicemail."

"Okay." Horatio replied calmly, "Valera hasn't seen her?" He asked knowing that she was helping to supervise Rebekah's training.

"No. I've asked around but no one seems to know where she is."

Horatio cocked his head to the side, "I think, Calleigh, that I might have an idea of where she might be. Hang tight, okay?" He turned and walked down the hallway.

Rather than stand in the middle of the hall waiting around, Calleigh sighed and went to the ballistics lab.


	4. Chapter 4

**Shards of Glass **

Chapter 4

Horatio pushed open the door to the stairwell and walked inside. Instead of letting the door slam behind him, he held on to the handle and let it close with a soft click. There was a faint hum from the florescent light above him, but otherwise the stairwell was quiet. He headed upward, taking his time. After climbing a few flights, he spotted a figure curled up tightly and leaning against the wall. He stopped in his tracks and sat down on the nearest step.

"Rebekah?" His voice was soft.

The figure didn't move.

"Rebekah?" Horatio tried again.

This time a head moved, slowly peering out from its protective shell.

Horatio cocked his head. "Hi."

Staring blankly, she sniffled and shifted her body. "Hi."

He could see a tear-stained face marred with bruising and red marks. "People have been looking for you." He said gently. Her hair was a mess and her clothing was in disarray.

Rebekah looked up at him and nodded once. "You found me."

"I did." Horatio replied, a hint of a smile on his face.

"I'm late for my shift, aren't I?" She asked.

"Sweetheart, I don't want you to worry about that, okay?"

She nodded, wiping tears from her bruised face. "I...errr...someone...attacked me." She choked. Her head was still pounding and it was hard to focus on anything.

"I know. And we will take care of that. Right now, I want you to sit tight until we get you checked out by a doctor." Horatio flipped open his phone. "Calleigh, will you meet me in the west stairwell? I think I have found what you were looking for."

"I'll be right there." Calleigh replied.

Horatio closed his phone. "Rebekah, we're going to take you to the hospital, okay?"

She nodded again, keeping her eyes on him. "I don't remember what happened." She sobbed.

"Don't worry about that. It's not important. What is important is making sure you are okay." Horatio replied, his face filled with compassion.

A door below them opened, startling Rebekah and making her cower even more into the corner.

"Horatio?" A southern accent echoed from the floor below.

"Up here, Calleigh." He replied.

Shuffling footsteps, and a few moments later, Calleigh was squatting down in front of Rebekah.

"What happened to you?" She murmured.

Rebekah looked up at her, but didn't respond. A hand appeared into her field of vision and she cautiously took it. Her muscles protested as she was hoisted to her feet. She kept an arm wrapped tightly around her chest, holding her torn shirt.

Horatio took off his jacket and placed it around Rebekah's shoulders. "Calleigh is going to take good care of you, okay?" He watched as Calleigh helped Rebekah down the stairs.

With that taken care of, Horatio turned his attention to the next stage of the case.

Locating the crime scene and collecting evidence.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5 

Calleigh took Rebekah to the hospital herself, rather than call an ambulance. Ambulances tended to draw a crowd. The last thing Calleigh wanted was to deal with curious onlookers. She called Detective Frank Tripp while en route and told him to meet them at the hospital.

Rebekah remained silent the entire ride, staring down at the floorboards of Calleigh's car.

They were shown to a private examination room, where Rebekah was told to change into a hospital gown. It was all so clinical and cold. She felt numb. She was running on auto pilot because it was easier. Thinking about what had happened hours earlier made the panic rise up inside of her. _Screaming. Heart pounding._ Sheer terror about being trapped in the back seat of her SUV; it had been sensory overload.

Not hearing any movement behind the changing curtain, Calleigh became worried. "Rebekah?"

Rebekah blinked, slowly registering Calleigh's voice. "Sorry."

As she changed out of her ruined clothes, she handed each item to Calleigh so that they could be bagged for evidence collection. The hospital gown felt flimsy, offering her little warmth. She stepped out from behind the curtain, and stood awkwardly, waiting for further directions.

Calleigh finished marking the paper bag containing Rebekah's clothing, and turned around. "Okay. Now for the difficult part." She said softly. "I need to photograph your injuries." She picked up the camera from the counter. "I'll try to be as quick as I can." She kept her voice soft and soothing, even though she knew Rebekah probably wasn't absorbing everything being said to her right now.

_Click._

_Click, zoom, click._

Calleigh maneuvered her way around, carefully moving aside sections of Rebekah's hospital gown to make sure each bruise and injury was photographed. Her face and head had gotten the brunt of the injuries.

It was heartbreaking for Calleigh to see someone she knew in so much pain. She felt edgy, with a heavy weight lying across her chest, her breathing constricted. Photographing dead bodies and crime scenes was procedural. Photographing a living and breathing victim made Calleigh feel sick. Once finished, she guided Rebekah to the examination table.

"I am going to have a doctor collect a rape kit." She said, covering Rebekah with a sterile paper sheet.

Rebekah shook her head. "I wasn't raped." She whispered.

"Are you sure?" Calleigh asked.

"Pretty sure."

Calleigh nodded, "We should do a rape kit anyway. Just to make sure." She walked to the door and poked her head out into the hall, signaling the doctor and nurse to come in.

Rebekah was relieved that they were both women. Not that it made the examination any easier, but somehow, in this instance a woman physician was more comforting.

"I'll be right outside." Calleigh said.

Rebekah grabbed Calleigh's arm before she could leave. "Stay." She whispered, "Please."

"Okay." Calleigh nodded, and stood near Rebekah's head. She felt tears behind her eyes and blinked rapidly. She did not want to break down in front of Rebekah. Not when the poor young woman needed Calleigh's strength. She took in a slow deep breath.

Rebekah winced as the doctor began her examination. Calleigh murmured reassurances, not knowing what was worse. The assault, or the examination afterwards.

With the rape kit completed, Calleigh left Rebekah in the room alone for a few minutes while she stepped out into the hallway to speak with Detective Tripp.

"How is she?" Tripp asked, standing up from a bench.

Calleigh sighed. "She's shell-shocked, and probably has a killer headache from the concussion. I think with some time and therapy, she'll be all right."

Tripp nodded, "Rape kit?"

"Was negative, thank goodness." Calleigh looked at the notebook Tripp was tapping against his other hand. "I'm not sure how much she remembers yet, but go easy on her, will you?"

"Yeah." He replied, pushing open the exam room door. Rebekah was lying with her head elevated on the examination table. "Hi Rebekah." He wheeled over a stool to sit down.

"Hey." She only knew Tripp in passing. The thought of describing her attack to him made her feel awkward and uncomfortable.

"Do you remember what happened to you?" He asked, trying not to stare too hard at the bruising on her face.

She looked at Tripp, clearing her throat to speak. "It's coming to me in bits and pieces. The doctor said that with the concussion, it may take some time."

"Of course." Tripp agreed. "Tell me what you do remember."

Rebekah shifted her gaze to the ceiling. "I had finished my shift, so I was heading to my car to go home."

"In the parking garage?" Tripp asked, scribbling down notes in his notepad.

"Yeah." She confirmed.

"Okay, and do you remember anything unusual in the garage before you got into your car?" He asked.

"I don't think so. I wasn't really paying attention." Internally, she was kicking herself for not being more aware of her surroundings, but really, how often would she scope out a garage that she parked her SUV in on a daily basis?

Tripp nodded, pausing in his note writing. "Then what?" He prompted.

"I got into my car. I remember a blindfold being put over my eyes. At first I thought it was my boyfriend, but when he didn't say anything and I was dragged into the back seat, I knew it wasn't him." She sniffled, feeling tears forming at the corners of her eyes. "I hit my head pretty hard on something, I'm not sure what. After that things get hazy."

"What's your boyfriend's name?"

"Bryan Drake. Why? Are you going to question him?" She asked.

"We have to. Standard procedure. You know that." Tripp explained.

"I guess." Rebekah nodded, wiping a tear from the side of her face before it trickled into her ear.

"Can you remember anything else?"

"My gun." She wiped another tear away. "The one I carry in my purse? I shot it, but I don't think I hit anything except my window. It scared him off though because after I fired it he ran."

"Okay, what kind of gun is it?" Tripp asked, still jotting down notes.

"A .38 revolver. I have a CCW permit."

"Came in handy then." Tripp joked, trying to help lighten the mood even though he knew it was probably pointless. For Rebekah's sake however, Tripp was relieved that the young woman had taken the initiative to get her handgun license. In this case it probably saved her from being raped, or even killed. "Where is the gun now?"

"I...don't know. I can't...I'm sorry." Rebekah shook her head.

"What about his voice? Did he say anything to you?" He gestured with his pen as he spoke.

"No, nothing. Not a word. It was disturbing." She replied.

"And you never saw anything?"

"No, the blindfold was on really tightly. I was totally blind." Rebekah sniffed loudly, hoping that Tripp's questions were almost over.

"What happened after he took off?"

"I...errr...don't remember the details. I stayed in my car for awhile, no idea for how long, I think I might have passed out." More tears trickled out of her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"It's okay." Tripp said, looking up from his notepad. "Every detail you give me helps. Calleigh said that Horatio found you in the stairwell this morning?"

"Yeah. I'm not sure when or how I got there though. I mean, I must have walked there, I just don't remember right now."

Tripp nodded and gave Rebekah a supportive look. "Thanks. Really. I know it's hard, but this gives us a good place to start." He closed his notebook. "You know how to reach me if you remember anything else."

Rebekah sniffed. "Yes, thanks Detective."

Tripp turned, walking out into the hallway where Calleigh was waiting. "She's a very lucky woman. I just hope we get some answers for her soon." He put his notebook inside his jacket pocket. "The first place I would start would be her car."

"I think Horatio already has someone on it." Calleigh replied.

He nodded. "You need anything?"

"No, thank you. I think they are keeping her overnight, so I'll make sure she gets settled and then head back to the lab. Thanks Frank." Calleigh gave Tripp a grateful smile.

"No problem. See you later."


	6. Chapter 6

**Shards of Glass**

Chapter 6

Soon after Calleigh took Rebekah to the hospital, Horatio went down to the parking garage. He slowly walked around Rebekah's silver SUV looking for anything that was out of place. Other than the broken window, nothing was immediately apparent. Flipping open his cell phone, Horatio dialed Ryan Wolfe's number.

"Mr. Wolfe. Meet me in the parking garage. And bring your kit." He didn't wait for a response, snapping his phone closed.

The vehicle's doors were all unlocked. Horatio refrained from touching anything until Wolfe arrived to process the scene. He stood for a long while staring at what was left of the broken window in the door. He didn't like thinking about what may have happened.

"H?" Wolfe's voice echoed in the garage. "What's up?"

"I'd like you to process Rebekah's vehicle, please." Horatio replied.

"Sure. What am I looking for?"

"Evidence, Mr. Wolfe. Rebekah was assaulted last night and I believe it happened here in her vehicle." He cocked his head and looked up.

"Is she okay?" Wolfe asked, surprised.

"She will be." Horatio answered.

"Yeah, I'll get right on it." Wolfe set down his kit and opened it up.

"Thank you." Horatio said as he walked out of the garage.

Wolfe snapped on a pair of latex gloves. Digging into his kit, he pulled out a flashlight and some crime scene tape. He quickly wrapped the tape around the perimeter of Rebekah's SUV while keeping an eye out for anything out of the ordinary. As he was securing the tape around a pillar, something caught his attention.

There was a hole in the pillar.

Wolfe aimed his flashlight at the hole. There was the shiny base of a bullet staring back at him. Pocketing the flashlight, Wolfe lifted the camera that was hanging around his neck and began to snap photos. He always took more than was required for evidence documentation because he liked to make sure every possible angle was depicted.

Grabbing some pliers from his kit, Wolfe worked carefully to pry the bullet from the pillar. At first glance, the mangled bullet looked like a .38 or a .357 caliber but he would leave that to Calleigh to confirm in the ballistics lab. He dropped the spent bullet into a small evidence envelope, marking it with his name, the date, and location.

He began photographing the broken window as well as the pieces of glass on the ground. It looked like the window of the car was shot at from the inside.

Digging in his kit again, Wolfe pulled out some black dusting powder to print the rear passenger door. There were smudges and some partials. Very few usable prints. Wolfe snapped photographs of them all before using tape collection to lift the prints off the door.

With everything carefully documented, Wolfe walked around to the other side of the SUV and opened the rear door. He shined his flashlight inside the back seat, taking in the sight. At first glance he saw a purse on the floor boards with its contents strewn about. There was also a blindfold and a single white button on the seat. He did a second pass with the flashlight. This time he spotted something silver on the floor partially hidden underneath the front passenger seat. A small revolver. Wolfe sighed.

This was going to be a long morning.


	7. Chapter 7

**Shards of Glass **

Chapter 7

"It's a .38 Special." Calleigh said, holding up the bullet that Wolfe had just given her to process. "I won't be able to get an exact match on the striations, but it will be close enough to see if the bullet came from the gun you found."

"Work your magic, Cal." Wolfe replied. "I need to go check in with Horatio about the rest of the evidence." He tapped the counter before heading out of the ballistics lab, a box of evidence in his hands.

Horatio was talking to Tripp in the hallway when Wolfe found them. Rather than interrupt, Wolfe waited patiently.

"The boyfriend is waiting in an interrogation room. I had him picked up at the hospital." Tripp was saying.

"Thank you, Frank." Horatio looked up at Wolfe. "Mr. Wolfe, what do you have for me?"

"I found a gun inside Rebekah's SUV. Calleigh is verifying ballistics now. I also found a blindfold, and several clothing fibers. Most of them probably came off Rebekah's clothes during the struggle." Wolfe explained. He handed the evidence bag containing the blindfold to Horatio. "I also found a piece of blue fabric trapped in the door with the broken window."

"Left behind by the suspect?" Tripp asked.

"It looks that way, yeah." Wolfe nodded, "I was going to take it to Trace and see if Delko can find anything on it."

"Let me know what you find." Horatio said.

"Will do, H." Wolfe said as he headed to the trace evidence lab.

"Time to pay Mr. Drake a visit." Horatio looked at Tripp.

They walked down the hallway to the interrogation room where Bryan Drake was waiting. Horatio pushed open the glass door, giving Bryan a once over before sitting across from him. Tripp remained standing off to Horatio's left.

"Lieutenant Caine, I'd really like to get this over with quickly so I can get back to the hospital." Bryan looked mildly irritated. He had only met his girlfriend's boss once but it was enough to know that the man opposite him meant business.

"You can leave, Mr. Drake, as soon as we exclude you as a suspect." Horatio replied. Straight to the point.

"Suspect? You think I had something to do with what happened to Rebekah?" Bryan asked incredulously.

"We don't know until we question you." Tripp replied, pulling his notebook out of his jacket pocket.

"Whatever, man." Bryan leaned forward in his chair, resting his arms on the glass table.

"Where were you last night?" Tripp asked.

"At my apartment."

"Can anyone verify that?" Tripp began to write down notes in his notebook.

"No one except my dog." Bryan replied dryly.

"And you weren't concerned when you didn't hear from Rebekah?" Tripp asked.

"Not really. We don't see each other every day. Not that it's any of your business."

"It is our business, Mr. Drake." Horatio cut in.

Tripp looked up from his notebook. "And do us a favor, drop the hostility. It only makes you look guilty."

Bryan sighed deeply. "I apologize. I am just really worried about my girlfriend, okay? I would never hurt her."

"Of course." Tripp replied, a slight note of sarcasm in his voice.

Bryan wisely said nothing, waiting for the next question.

"Mr. Drake, I understand that you occasionally blindfold Rebekah in her SUV, is that correct?" Horatio asked.

Bryan folded his arms across his chest. A mild look of surprise briefly crossed his face followed by a frown. "Yeah, but it's not to scare her. I blindfold her to keep the element of surprise about where we are going on a date."

"I see. So can you explain to me why we found this black blindfold in Rebekah's SUV?" Horatio held up a clear bag containing the blindfold that Wolfe had found.

"I have no idea. Look, I keep the one I use in my glove box. You can take a look if you want."

"Don't worry, we will." Tripp replied, busy scribbling down notes.

"Are those the clothes you had on last night?" Horatio asked, putting the bagged blindfold in his pocket.

"My clothes?" Bryan looked surprised. "Look, I just threw on the first thing I could find after Rebekah called me this morning. Unless I am being charged with something, if you want my clothes you'll need a search warrant."

"I'll get one." Horatio replied. He stood up from his chair. "Anything else, Frank?"

"No, I think that will do it." Tripp said, finishing up his notes.

"So can I go?" Bryan asked.

"Don't go far, Mr. Drake." Horatio warned.

"Yeah, we may need to question you again." Tripp flipped his notebook shut, putting it in his jacket pocket.

Bryan stood up, shaking his head in annoyance. He left without saying a word.

Tripp waited until Bryan had left the room. "What do you think, Horatio?"

"I'm not sure. We'll have to do some more digging. I'll have Cooper pull the surveillance tapes from the parking garage and see if we can find anything useful. Make sure you get us that warrant." Without waiting for a response, Horatio walked out of the interrogation room.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N:** Sorry it has taken so long to update this. I have been out of town plus my beta took awhile to get this back to me. Thanks for reading! I really appreciate it and I hope you are enjoying the story.

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter 8**

Bryan Drake called a taxi because his car was still parked at the hospital. MDPD wasn't far from the hospital but it was far enough that he didn't want to walk. He had forgotten to jot down the phone number of Rebekah's hospital room. Glancing at his wristwatch, Bryan realized that he had no idea how long he had been gone. Rebekah was probably wondering where he was.

He hurried into the hospital once the cab dropped him off. Rebekah was propped up in bed watching television when he walked into the room. She turned down the volume a bit.

"That was a really long lunch. Where did you go?" She asked.

Bryan sat down in the chair next to her bed. "I went to some sushi place."

Rebekah frowned. "Was there a long wait or something?"

He sighed, crossing his arms over his chest. "Yeah."

"That's annoying." She commented. Something didn't feel right.

"Yeah, it was a grand opening so the place was packed." He wasn't looking at her when he spoke. His eyes were looking down at the floor as if the patterned linoleum was a work of art.

Her frown deepened, intensifying the ache behind her eyes. "You're lying."

"Why would I lie about that?"

"Bryan, I may have a concussion but I am not an idiot. Do you realize how long you were gone?" She asked.

"It wasn't more than a couple of hours." He shrugged his shoulders.

She rubbed her temples, in a feeble attempt to alleviate her headache. "Three hours. Three hours, Bryan. If something came up while you were out, a simple phone call would have been nice so I wouldn't worry about you."

Bryan uncrossed his arms and leaned forward in the chair. "Okay, so I didn't want to tell you that your boss had me picked up for questioning."

"What?" Rebekah's frown couldn't deepen any further than it already was.

"They wanted to know where I was last night."

She swallowed the lump in her throat. "Should I be concerned?"

"No. Look, they asked about my clothes and the blindfold I keep in my car. I told them to get a warrant if they wanted to search my stuff." He shrugged his shoulders again.

"Are you telling me that you are a suspect?" She felt tears beginning to form in the corners of her eyes. His nonchalance was a bitter pill to swallow after everything that she had been through in the last 24 hours.

"I'm not!" Bryan's voice was laced with irritation.

_Blindfold. _

_A Monster waiting._

Fear and panic were simmering under the surface. "Are you a suspect?" Rebekah asked again.

"Dammit Rebekah, can't you just let it go?"

Her mistrust was staring back at her. Tears began to fall from her swollen eyes. "I think you should leave." She whispered.

"What the hell? I told you I wasn't." Bryan's eyes flashed angrily.

"They don't go to the trouble of getting a search warrant if they don't suspect you." She wiped the tears from her face. "Leave."

"I'm here, aren't I? How can you not trust me?"

She laughed bitterly. "You have been lying to me since you walked back into this room. The real question is how _can_ I trust you? Now leave before I call security."

He stood up from the chair, holding up his hands. "Fine."

Rebekah increased the volume on the television, making her intentions clear. Bryan stalked out of the room, letting the door slam behind him. She choked out a sob. The pain behind her eyes pounded mercilessly.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N:** I really struggled with this chapter. It took me a week to write it. My beta got back to me quickly, but it took me another few days before I had the desire to review the chapter and make edits. So...there we go. As the story progresses, I am noticing that the chapters are taking longer for me to write.

**Shards of Glass **

Chapter 9

In the Audio/Visual lab, Dan Cooper focused on the computer monitors in front of him. At Horatio's request, Cooper had pulled the parking garage surveillance tapes corresponding to the approximate time of Rebekah's attack. He intently watched the first tape making sure he captured every single detail.

The view of Rebekah's SUV was partially obstructed by a concrete pillar. He paused the tape when he spotted a figure walking toward the SUV. Whoever it was had their back to the camera. Cooper restarted the tape and watched as the figure approached Rebekah's SUV. He saw the person's hand move to fumble inside a pocket. There was a brief cessation of movement before the rear passenger door opened. The figure climbed inside.

Cooper wrote down the timestamp from the frame so he would be able to find additional footage on the other surveillance tape. This section of the parking garage had two cameras covering it which meant there were only two tapes to review. He was grateful. Other crime scenes, like banks, were especially grueling owing to their higher camera count.

Cooper didn't see any further movement around the SUV so he increased the tape speed.

"Are you watching surveillance tapes for Rebekah's case?" Calleigh asked as she walked into the lab.

Cooper nodded, "Yeah, Horatio had me pull them a few hours ago. So far I don't have much other than the back of somebody's head."

Calleigh sighed, turning to leave the room.

"Calleigh." Cooper called.

"Yes?" She turned back around and looked at the monitor.

"There's Rebekah walking to her SUV." Cooper froze the playback, writing down the timestamp again for his notes.

Calleigh's face darkened a bit as she pulled up a chair and sat down. "I'm not sure if I want to see this."

Cooper gave her a questioning look.

"It's different when the victim is someone you know." She explained.

When she didn't get up to leave, Cooper resumed the playback. They watched as Rebekah disappeared from view. The angle of the camera prevented them from seeing anything more than the top of her head as she opened the driver's side door and climbed inside the SUV. The door was closed and for a few moments nothing else happened.

When the SUV began to rock slightly in its parking spot, Calleigh balled her hands into fists. "Oh my god." She murmured.

They didn't have a full view of what was happening. The concrete pillar was blocking almost a third of the rear passenger window. From the shadows cast on the window, they could tell there was significant movement inside the SUV. Time seemed to crawl to a standstill when the window suddenly shattered, broken from the inside. It was strangely eerie watching the glass break and the shards hit the ground, but not hearing any sounds.

Almost immediately, the door with the broken window opened. A figure emerged, holding his arms up in the air, covering his face until he disappeared from the frame.

"Did you see that?" Cooper asked Calleigh rhetorically.

"It would seem, Mr. Cooper, that the suspect knew the locations of the cameras in the parking garage." Horatio answered from the doorway of the lab.

Cooper peered over his shoulder at Horatio. "Yeah." There was a faint note of surprise in his voice, though he was used to his boss simply showing up at just the right time.

He turned back to his monitor. The door to Rebekah's SUV was still open, allowing a slight view of the inside. There wasn't any movement so Cooper increased the playback speed on the tape. After a few minutes of watching nothing happen, he spotted movement and returned the tape to normal speed. The three of them watched as Rebekah stumbled out of her SUV, closing the door behind her. She disappeared out of frame and Cooper stopped the tape.

"I hope we find who did this." Calleigh spoke quietly. Her face was pale, a stark contrast to her usually cheerful demeanor.

Cooper wrote down the last timestamp. "I don't think we'll get much from the other surveillance tape. The camera is much further away than this one and I'm not even sure we get a good view of Rebekah's SUV."

"Take a look anyway. Let's make sure we have all our bases covered." Horatio said before he left the lab.

Calleigh followed him to give him her ballistics findings.


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N:** I made a few more tweaks to this chapter, so this is a re-publish.**  
**

**Shards of Glass **

**Chapter 10**

With a search warrant obtained by Tripp, Delko and Wolfe went to Bryan Drake's apartment. Bryan waited outside the building, pacing. From his demeanor, Delko couldn't tell if Bryan was nervous, annoyed, or a strange mix of the two. Wolfe proceeded to the apartment, forensics kit in hand, to search for the clothing that Bryan allegedly wore on the day of the attack.

The warrant included Bryan's car. Making sure he had everything he needed to work, Delko crossed the parking lot to the vehicle. He raised his camera, snapping photographs. When he was satisfied that there were enough photos of the exterior, he set his camera aside. Using Bryan's keys, Delko opened the car doors. He took his time inspecting the interior of the car. Periodically, he would glance across the parking lot at Bryan to see if his behavior would change under the stress of the search. Bryan's pacing continued the entire time Delko searched the car. Bryan's pacing increased when he realized that Delko had made an incriminating discovery.

The blindfold that Bryan claimed was in the glove box was missing.

Earlier, Tripp questioned Bryan about his things. The things in his apartment. The things in his car. The things inside the glove box. Under intense scrutiny, Bryan had finally admitted that he kept a spare key to Rebekah's SUV within the glove box. Delko was not surprised when the key also turned up missing. Confronted with this fact, Bryan became visibly uncomfortable. Angrily, Bryan moved his arms in short, quick bursts. His voice was raised and his pacing resumed. Delko smirked.

Search completed, Delko and Wolfe returned to the crime lab with several items of clothing, shoes, and a few other miscellaneous items.

"I'm going to log this stuff and then start running it for trace." Delko said, lugging a heavy box of evidence bags.

"Need any help?" Wolfe asked.

"Sure. Thanks." Delko nodded, "I've also got the evidence you gathered from Rebekah's SUV to process."

"Sounds like we'd better get to work then." Wolfe replied.

----

She was anxious. Hospitals were never a comfortable place for anyone and right now all Rebekah cared about was getting home. She idly flipped through the channels of the television, waiting for her cab to arrive.

"You, ma'am, look ready to get out of here." Horatio said from the doorway. He toyed with the sunglasses in his hands.

"Lieutenant!" Rebekah looked over at him in surprise. She was definitely not expecting to see her boss. "What are you doing here?" She asked, turning off the television.

"I came by to check on you." He replied. The bruising on her face now had a purple tint, marring her normally cheerful visage. He took a few steps into the room.

"Thanks." She replied quietly. "I've been discharged. I was waiting for a cab to take me home." She picked at the hospital scrubs that a nurse had given her to wear.

"Well Rebekah, why don't I give you a ride?" Horatio suggested.

"I don't want to be a bother."

"Never." There was a hint of a smile on his face.

Rebekah slowly climbed off the hospital bed. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." He answered, putting on his sunglasses.

She walked over to the corner of the room and grabbed a jacket from one of the hangers. "And thanks for loaning me your jacket." She said, holding it out to him. She tried to smile but the action hurt her bruised face too much.

Horatio took the jacket, cocking his head slightly. There was a pained expression on his face. "I want you to know that we are going to find who did this to you."

Rebekah nodded, uncertain of if her voice would work. She let out a long, slow breath attempting to calm herself. "I know." She said finally.

He didn't say anything further as they walked outside the hospital toward the Hummer. He didn't want to press the subject, giving Rebekah the lead to talk about the attack only if she chose.

----

"I found out that Bryan is a suspect." Rebekah said once they were settled in the Hummer and on the move.

"We've questioned him." Horatio acknowledged, keeping his eyes on the road. "And I had a team search his place earlier today. It's…it's probably best if you don't have any contact with him until we finish the investigation."

"Yeah." Rebekah replied softly. She could feel tears rising up inside of her. "We argued yesterday and I haven't spoken to him since. I got scared when I found out he had lied to me about being questioned."

"Understandable." Horatio agreed. He sensed that Rebekah was starting to get upset. "Right now I just want you to focus on getting some rest, okay? Let us worry about the investigation." He glanced over at her.

Rebekah nodded, her gaze focused down on her hands in her lap. She blinked rapidly to stop any tears from escaping. She remained quiet for the remainder of the trip to her apartment. The only sounds in the Hummer were the occasional chimes and tinny-sounding voice from the GPS device.

Horatio dropped Rebekah off at her apartment with strict instructions for her to call him if she needed anything. He continued to drive around for awhile, giving himself some time to think. Driving was often the only time he had free of interruptions, unlike at the lab which was one interruption after another.

Something was bothering Horatio about the suspect on the video tape. He couldn't shake the nagging feeling that perhaps the suspect, in some capacity, worked at the MDPD building.


	11. Chapter 11

**Shards of Glass**

Chapter 11

It was in the Trace Lab that Eric Delko felt he made some of his best, case-breaking discoveries. The tiniest details often came to light after tests had been run and analyses had been performed. Fragments, dust particles, even minute amounts of substances left behind at a crime scene had meant the difference between a criminal walking free and a jail sentence.

A white lab coat covered Delko's clothing. Mandatory safety glasses and latex gloves further protected him from the numerous harsh chemicals found in the lab. He quietly worked on a small piece of navy fabric that Wolfe had pulled from the window of Rebekah's SUV. He cut several tiny samples, placing each one inside a glass test tube. Delko then added various reagents to the tubes before placing them into a centrifuge.

Nearby, Wolfe peered into a microscope. He frowned, not happy about what he was seeing. "All of these fibers that I collected from Rebekah's vehicle are from her clothes. I haven't found anything to tie Bryan Drake to the scene." He moved over to jot down some notes on the evidence envelope that had contained the fibers sitting on the microscope slide.

"I'm waiting on the results for this piece of fabric you found." Delko replied. The sampling machines whirred behind him. "What about Bryan's clothing? Did you find anything unusual?"

"No. Not a thing. And I have examined every piece of clothing that we bagged." Wolfe was surprised. He and Delko both had Bryan Drake pegged as Rebekah's attacker. "The guy may be a jerk, but I am starting to think he didn't do it."

"Well let's not get ahead of ourselves." Delko answered. "Did you read Calleigh's ballistics report?"

"Yeah. The gun I found in the vehicle was registered to Rebekah. The bullet pulled from the concrete pillar was a match to that gun. It verifies Rebekah's statement to Tripp about firing her gun in self defense."

Delko nodded. "Any prints?"

"The prints on the gun were Rebekah's. I dusted the interior and exterior of her SUV, but didn't find any prints other than hers. Whoever did this had gloves on the entire time." Wolfe leaned forward on to the desk, impatiently staring at the printer.

As if on command, the printer hummed to life and began churning out a sheet of paper. On it was printed the chemical composition of the substance Delko isolated from the navy fabric.

"Water, hydrochloric acid, dimethyl benzyl ammonium chloride, and polyoxyethylene." Delko read from the sheet.

"Okay." Wolfe breathed. His brow furrowed as he stared off into space for several moments. "Sounds like some sort of industrial-strength cleaner."

Delko went to the computer and began tapping on the keyboard.

"What are you doing?" Wolfe asked.

"Looking up what kind of cleaner this is." Delko replied, still typing. "Maybe we can tie it to a specific manufacturer, see where it leads us."

Wolfe walked over to look at the monitor. Two different manufacturers popped up on to the screen, along with a list of products under each one that contained the chemical components Delko had isolated. Wolfe scanned the list. "Bathroom cleaner?"

Delko nodded, reaching for his cell phone.

Horatio answered the call on the second ring. "Horatio."

"H? I think we just excluded Bryan Drake as a suspect."

"The evidence?" Horatio asked.

Delko continued, "None of the fibers found in Rebekah's SUV matched Bryan's clothing. Neither did the piece of navy fabric."

"I see." Horatio replied, "Anything else, Eric?"

"Yeah. I just isolated an industrial-strength bathroom cleaner from that fabric."

Horatio stopped in his tracks. "Do me a favor, Eric. Crosscheck your list of cleaners with our database and see if any are used in our building."

"Sure, hang on." Delko typed on the keyboard. Seconds later, the monitor displayed the database query. "Yeah, one hit. Bright Bowl Low Acidity Disinfectant. H, the lab's janitorial staff uses that disinfectant."

Horatio resumed walking, "Thank you, Eric." He snapped his phone shut.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N:** Yeah, I know...It's been absolutely ages since I updated this. Call it a mix of procrastination, being busy with RL, and the Christmas holidays. Anyway, enjoy:-)

**Shards of Glass**

**Chapter 12**

Returning from a nearby homicide scene, it didn't take long for Horatio Caine to arrive back at the crime lab. Though Rebekah's case had taken top priority owing to her being an employee, Horatio and his team still had other cases to work. He walked into the trace evidence lab where Eric Delko was working.

"Eric." Horatio announced.

Delko stopped what he was doing. "H. I did some digging and was able to find out which janitors were on duty the evening of Rebekah's attack." He walked to the computer, tapping on the keyboard. The monitor displayed three employee profiles: one woman and two men.

"I think," Horatio noted, "that we can exclude Elsa Morales."

"Yeah, she doesn't fit the profile Cooper created from the security tape. The suspect is at least 6 feet tall. Elsa is at most 5'2." Delko removed Elsa Morales's profile from the screen. "That leaves us with Julio Benevides and David Boyd."

"Mmmm. I'll have Frank bring them in." Horatio replied. He reached for his cell phone and flipped it open.

"Yeah?" Tripp answered.

Horatio got straight to the point. "Frank. Pick up a couple of the lab's janitors, David Boyd and Julio Benevides, and bring them to Interrogation, please."

"Okay. Suspects in Rebekah's case?"

"They are. Oh and Frank? Let's do this by the book."

"I'm on it." Tripp confirmed.

Calleigh walked into the room. "I just spoke with Rebekah on the phone. I didn't want to give her too many details about her case, but I did tell her we had a good lead. Please don't tell me I lied."

"You didn't. We've got two suspects that H is having Tripp bring in." Delko replied.

"Really?" She peered at the monitor. "David and Julio? Those guys are harmless."

"Maybe not." Horatio said, walking out of the room.

-------------------

Julio Benevides and David Boyd were both in interrogation rooms. The sunlight filtered into each room through the metal honeycomb window covers, leaving a golden glow. Horatio stood in the hallway, facing the glass walls. His eyes moved from one room to the other as he studied each man. They both were dressed identically in navy shirts, beige pants, and black work boots. Neither suspect appeared worried, but Horatio knew that could change quickly during an interrogation. He smiled at Calleigh as she walked down the hallway and into David Boyd's room, a file and her forensics kit in hand.

After watching Calleigh begin her questions, Horatio pushed open the door to Julio Benevides's room. He remained standing, cocking his head in Julio's direction. "Mr. Benevides, I understand you work evenings here?"

"Si, Lieutenant. Six days a week for the past five years."

"And you were here on the night of March 5th?" Horatio asked.

"From three to midnight," Benevides nodded. "Forgive me, Lieutenant, but what is this about?" His confusion was apparent.

"One of my lab techs was attacked in the parking garage, Mr. Benevides. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you?"

Benevides kept his eyes on Horatio. "Miss Rebekah? I heard about it, but that is all."

Horatio pressed on. "Did you see or talk to Rebekah that day?"

Benevides thought for a few moments, counting the days back on his fingers. He looked up at Horatio again and shook his head. "I didn't see her. I was working the second floor that day. You should ask David if he saw her. He was cleaning all the restrooms in the building."

"I intend to, Mr. Benevides," Horatio replied. "Can I see your shoes, please?"

"My shoes?"

"Your shoes," Horatio confirmed.

Benevides didn't hesitate, taking off both of his boots. He placed them on the table.

Horatio pulled a rubber glove from his jacket pocket. Instead of putting it on, he folded it over the top of the boot, protecting his fingers from directly touching the leather. If there was evidence on the boots, Horatio did not want to further compromise it. He studied each boot, paying particular attention to the tread on the bottom.

"Thank you, Mr. Benevides. You're free to go."

-------------------

Placing the file and her forensics kit on the table, Calleigh sat down across from Boyd. "Hi David. Do you know why you are here?" She offered a brief smile.

"Detective Tripp didn't go into no details." Boyd leaned back in his chair.

Calleigh nodded, "You were working the evening of March 5th, is that correct?"

Boyd closed his eyes, thinking. "Yeah me, Julio, and Elsa."

"And did you see Rebekah Mayers that day?" Calleigh asked.

"I see her almost every day." He shrugged.

Calleigh stared at Boyd. "That's not what I asked."

He sighed. "Yeah, I saw her that day. I had just finished cleaning the women's restroom. We almost ran into each other."

"David, are you aware that Rebekah was attacked in the parking garage?" Calleigh's voice was strong and confident. She watched Boyd intently.

He blinked and then looked down at the table. "I heard. Is she okay? I've been worried. She's a nice girl." He nervously tugged at the sleeves of his shirt, drawing Calleigh's eyes like a magnet.

"I'm afraid I'm not at liberty to say." Calleigh clasped her hands together, resting them on the table. "You were using Bright Bowl Low Acidity Disinfectant, is that correct?"

"Yeah. Tool of the trade." He shrugged again.

She nodded toward his arm. "How did you tear your shirt sleeve?"

Boyd's eyes immediately went to his sleeve. There was a three inch gash that had been poorly sewn back together. "I rip my clothes all the time. Part of the job."

Calleigh opened the file in front of her. "Okay, then how do you explain this?" She pushed a photograph toward Boyd. It was a close up of a piece of navy fabric. "It was snagged on the broken window of Rebekah's SUV."

Boyd looked uncomfortable, pulling at the collar of his shirt. "I don't know. There are lots of navy shirts. Maybe it's Julio's. Have you talked to him?"

"That is...unlikely." Horatio said, walking into the room. He stopped next to Calleigh.

"Man, I don't know nothing!" Boyd asserted.

Calleigh snapped on a pair of latex gloves. "Take off your shoes."

"What? Why?" Boyd was clearly agitated.

"Now, Mr. Boyd," Horatio replied.

Having no choice, Boyd removed his boots and pushed them across the table to Calleigh.

She smiled. "Thank you." She tilted each boot backwards, studying the tread with a lighted magnifying glass. Something on the right boot caught her eye. Calleigh reached inside her kit for a pair of tweezers. Carefully, she extracted several tiny shards of glass. "I wonder where these came from." She gave Boyd a pointed look. Without analysis, Calleigh couldn't be certain the glass shards were from Rebekah's SUV. Regardless, things were not looking too good for David Boyd.

Horatio glanced at the sweating suspect. "Now…would be a good time for you to start telling us the truth, Mr. Boyd."


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: **_3/8/07_: Began writing first draft of the chapter. _3/9/07_: Gave first two sections to beta for review. _3/12/07_: Made some corrections to the first two sections. _3/19/07_: Began writing first draft of the interrogation scene. _3/23/07_: Gave last section to beta for review. _3/27/07_: Finished editing the interrogation scene. Only **one more** chapter left to write!  
**A/N #2:** Rebekah Mayers, Julio Benevides, David Boyd, and Bryan Drake are the only characters I own. The rest of the characters do not belong to me, they belong to those who created CSI:Miami.

**  
Shards of Glass**

Chapter 13

With evidence tying David Boyd to the crime scene, it was simple for Tripp to obtain a search warrant. The warrant encompassed Boyd's residence and vehicle, to ensure no evidence was missed.

The apartment was small, sparsely decorated, and meticulously clean. Delko set down his kit in the living room and opened it, ready for use. A camera hung from a wide strap around his neck. He glanced around the room to get a feel for what he was dealing with.

Tripp walked past, opening a door on the left. "Bathroom," he stated, leaving the door open so that Delko could see inside.

Delko nodded, raising his camera to snap pictures of the room. It was the cleanest bathroom he had ever seen. The sink and countertop gleamed. Towels were folded neatly on a towel bar. A laundry hamper was tucked away in one corner of the room. Delko shook his head in amazement. "I hope he cleans the lab as well as he cleans his apartment."

"Maybe the guy is obsessive compulsive or something," Tripp replied. He opened another door and peered inside the room. His breath caught in his throat. It took a moment for Tripp to gather himself. "Delko, you'd better come look at this."

Delko walked from the bathroom, stopping next to Tripp. It was David Boyd's bedroom, neat and organized like the rest of the apartment, but with one glaring difference. There were picture frames covering almost every surface of the furniture. Delko's eyes scanned the frames.

Every single frame contained a photograph of Rebekah.

Rebekah working in the lab, Rebekah in the break room, Rebekah talking on her cell phone. It felt like a day in the life of Rebekah Mayers.

"Sick bastard." Delko spat out the words. "I bet Rebekah didn't even know she was having her picture taken in most of these." He walked further into the room, looking more closely at each photograph.

"Yeah, he's a real piece of work alright," Tripp agreed. "And why only in here? Why not spread these pictures around the place?"

Delko began photographing the room. "It's personal. Private. He didn't want to share his collection with anyone else."

Tripp sighed deeply before exiting the bedroom, allowing Delko to finish his work.

-----

"He is obsessed with her, H." Delko was standing next to Horatio in the layout room. They were surrounded by the photographs Delko had taken of Boyd's apartment.

Horatio was silent, taking in the expanse of evidence in front of him.

"I found this. In the nightstand." Delko held up a plastic evidence bag. It contained a paper napkin that had been wadded up and probably thrown in the trash. Delko had found it meticulously smoothed out. There was a lipstick imprint visible where a woman had blotted her lips after applying her lipstick. "I haven't tested it for DNA yet, but I bet it will have Rebekah's saliva on it."

Horatio put his hands on his hips. "What else did you find?"

"Along with the napkin, I found a few candy bar wrappers. I fumed them for fingerprints and found some belonging Rebekah and David Boyd." Delko replied. "I think he was collecting mementos."

"It looks that way, Eric. It looks that way."

"Calleigh gave me her report on the glass shards she pulled from David Boyd's boots. It's a match to the glass from Rebekah's SUV." Delko held out the report.

Horatio studied it for a moment before handing it back. "I think it's time to have another conversation with Mr. Boyd."

-----

Inside an interrogation room, David Boyd sat with his arms folded across his chest.

Eric Delko walked into the room, a folder in his hand. He placed it on the table and settled into the chair across from Boyd. "I understand you waived your right to have an attorney present during questioning," Delko remarked.

Boyd nodded. "I didn't see the point."

Delko shrugged. "We have evidence placing you at the crime scene. You have no alibi for your whereabouts during the time of Rebekah's attack. All in all, this doesn't look good for you."

"We went to your apartment, Mr. Boyd," Horatio said from the doorway. He walked into the room and stopped next to Delko. "And what we saw concerned us a great deal."

"You should see what I deal with on a daily basis here at work!" Boyd replied. "You people are dirty. Messy. Disrespectful of your surroundings." The fingers on his left hand twitched. "I am sure you left my apartment looking like a landfill."

"The cleanliness of your apartment wasn't our concern, Mr. Boyd," Horatio replied. "What concerned us was that we found a large quantity of photographs of Rebekah at your apartment. And most...were taken without her consent."

Boyd unfolded his arms and leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "Rebekah? She's my girlfriend, you know."

"Excuse me?" Delko asked, unable to mask the surprise in his voice.

"We talk every day. She gives me candy bars. Sometimes we even have lunch dates." Boyd elaborated.

Delko scoffed," Well that's one way of looking at it."

"I didn't want to say nothing before because I thought it might get us in trouble. Don't you have pictures of your girl at your place? It's not illegal," Boyd replied.

"It's not illegal," Horatio agreed. "But harassment and stalking are."

"Stalking Rebekah? This is some kind of a joke, right? I love her and she loves me." Boyd was insulted.

Delko shook his head. He was not amused. He had heard many strange things during interrogations, but this time it was hitting much closer to home. Rebekah was someone he knew and worked with. "I think Rebekah would disagree with you. And not only that, but she's dating another guy."

"Bryan? Yeah, I know about him. It's nothing serious between them." Boyd shrugged.

"So it didn't bother you when Rebekah went out with Bryan?" Delko asked.

"No, man. Like I told you, it's nothing serious." Boyd's fingers began tapping against the table. "They're friends."

"Yeah well it's serious enough that they spend several evenings a week together." Delko replied.

Boyd's fidgeting increased. "I know how she feels about me and that is all that is important."

"So...what? You figured you would follow her and maybe surprise her with the whole blindfold routine, just like you saw Bryan doing?" Delko smirked.

Boyd's face flushed with anger. "What are you talking about?"

"Mr. Boyd, we're talking about why you attacked Rebekah in the parking garage." Horatio replied.

"Attack her? I didn't attack her! I was saving her! Bryan is all wrong for her. He is dirty. Filthy." Boyd's face darkened. "I was saving her from him."

Horatio looked down at Boyd. "That's where you are wrong, my friend. The only person Rebekah needed saving from...was you."


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: **_3/29/07_: Began writing first three paragraphs of chapter. _4/17/07_: Finally got off my lazy caboose and continued writing the rest of the chapter. _4/19/07_: Received notes back from Beta & began editing the chapter. _4/23/07_: Second set of edits complete.

**Shards of Glass **

Chapter 14

Rebekah Mayers returned to work. She had to. Being stuck at her apartment, alone, gave her too much time to think. And go stir crazy.

She had traded in her SUV for something smaller. A sporty two door coupe. She started car pooling to work with another lab tech. Rebekah knew it would be a long time before she would be able to enter the parking garage alone.

Nights were the hardest. Sometimes she would lay awake for hours, sleepless. Other nights, she would fight through sleep shrouded in nightmares. Counseling was difficult too, bringing endless emotions to the surface. The hour-long sessions were focused entirely upon her. Her relationships. Her family. Her goals. Her career. Her attack. It was exhausting. Rebekah longed for things to return to normal. The only thing that would bring that normalcy was the passage of time.

It was a quiet affair, returning to the lab. She hadn't made any sort of announcement. Rebekah had simply shown up at the start of her usual shift and began digging into her pile of case files. There had been a raised eyebrow from Maxine Valera, but Rebekah had smiled in return, diffusing any awkwardness that had shadowed her into the lab.

The methodical tasks of her job forced Rebekah to maintain her focus away from herself. Work provided the distraction she desired. The only way she could push past the traumatic attack was to continue living her life.

Her cell phone rang, breaking her concentration. She glanced at the caller ID, frowning. She snapped off her latex gloves and picked up the phone.

"Bryan. I told you to stop calling me."

There was a sigh on the other end. "I know, but I miss you."

"I'm tired, Bryan. I don't have the patience for this. It's time to move on." Rebekah closed her eyes, feeling frustration build up inside of her.

"I thought that with some more time that maybe…" His voice trailed off.

"No. I'm sorry. I just can't. I mean it. Do not call me again." She snapped her phone shut.

It was time for a break. Her concentration had been interrupted. She sighed heavily, struggling to maintain her composure. Being tired all the time did that.

Rebekah walked out of the lab to the one place she felt safe.

-----

In the stairwell, she sat on a step. Resting her head against the wall, Rebekah closed her eyes. Fluorescent lights hummed above her head. It was a contrast to the hectic noise of the crime lab.

A door below her clicked open, squeaking on its hinges.

Rebekah's eyes snapped open. She had no idea how long she had been sitting in the stairwell.

Footsteps echoed.

"Hi." Horatio's voice was soft.

"Hey," she replied.

"I figured…that if I didn't see you after half an hour that I should probably go and look for you." He smiled, squatting down beside her.

"Oh! I'm so sorry. I must have dozed off." She moved to get up, but Horatio stilled her by putting a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't worry about it, okay?"

Rebekah nodded. "I should get back to work." Her voice was quiet.

Horatio stood up, holding out a hand. "You'll be safe now, Rebekah."

"Thanks." She gave him a brave smile and took his hand.

"You're welcome," he replied, taking her weight as she stood so she wouldn't fall.

Rebakah squeezed his hand. "No really. Thank you."

Horatio looked down as he released her hand. "It's all I know how to do." He looked up again, a smile flashed across his face.


End file.
